Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE:SAR) Short Interest Update

Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE:SAR) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 138,900 shares, a decrease of 21.7% from the November 30th total of 177,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 88,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.6 days.

Saratoga Investment Price Performance

Shares of Saratoga Investment stock opened at $23.86 on Tuesday. Saratoga Investment has a twelve month low of $21.56 and a twelve month high of $26.49. The firm has a market cap of $329.29 million, a P/E ratio of 15.59 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.22.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $43.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.84 million. Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 13.64% and a return on equity of 15.88%. As a group, research analysts expect that Saratoga Investment will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a None dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th were issued a $1.09 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 11.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 4th. Saratoga Investment’s payout ratio is presently 193.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SAR shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered shares of Saratoga Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Compass Point boosted their price objective on Saratoga Investment from $24.75 to $26.25 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. B. Riley restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Saratoga Investment from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.42.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment in the second quarter valued at approximately $108,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new stake in Saratoga Investment during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $116,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 8.4% in the second quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 9,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 770 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Saratoga Investment by 12.2% during the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 9,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PVG Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Saratoga Investment in the third quarter valued at $236,000. 19.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Saratoga Investment

Saratoga Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in leveraged and management buyouts, acquisition financings, growth financings, recapitalization, debt refinancing, and transitional financing transactions at the lower end of middle market companies. It structures its investments as debt and equity by investing through first and second lien loans, mezzanine debt, co-investments, select high yield bonds, senior secured bonds, unsecured bonds, and preferred and common equity.